recent takeout from han dynasty

-wonton in chili oil: this was tasty but there was very little meat (pork?) in the dumplings- which confused me but didnt bother me too much. i was really hungry, and the plain dumpling skins marinating in tons of chili oil tasted great- but these arent big meaty dumplings, if thats your thing

-spicy cucumber: this was just pieces of cucumber cut up and swimming in chili oil. not bad but not that interesting and i would not get it again. but the bites of cucumber are a nice change from all the noodles/rice/meat. the dish is oily and spicy- not exactly as dry and refreshing as i had hoped

-pea shoots with garlic: this consisted of greens sauteed with LOTS of fresh garlic. delicious. super simple but i loved this dish. a welcome addition if the rest of the dishes are heavy. this also isnt spicy at all

-sesame noodles: ive gotten this at least ten times at han dynasty and i just cant get enough. lots of minced garlic in there too to add heat. noodles this time were thicker and starchier than usual. cant go wrong with these. and theyre not spicy so its a good complement to the hot food.

-dan dan noodles: really interesting flavor- spicy and mildly sweet almost? i wonder what spices are in the dish. these noodles are a bit less saucy compared to the sesame noodles. i still prefer the sesame but its a close call. these are very interesting- definitely recommend at least trying them once if you havent done so

-twice cooked fish: white fish fried in chunks with lots of chili, leeks, black beans- the fish is always really crunchy and enjoyable. some pieces are a bit tough, probably as a result of being overcooked, but the flavor is always great. very salty and aggressively seasoned. i dream about this dish. and eat it a lot. i think this is my favorite at han

next time ill definitely be ordering the pea shoots again. has anyone tried their other vegetable dishes? sometimes its nice to eat something green in between bites of fried / starchy goodness

cant comment on the service since i got the food to go, but theyve always been very nice to me in the past. and members of my party are quite insistent that they make the food less spicy...which i find annoying and kind of embarassing in a szechuan restaurant....to be honest i dont think these requests matter at all. the food has always been consistenty spicy, in my opinion.

wrong thread, but i'll chime in here anyways. recently ate at han dynasty...places of comparison were two separate restos in atlanta (tasty china and another one that closed), bamboo garden (bellevue, wa), and chung king (garfield, ca)4 dishes: Dan Dan noodles, dry pepper chicken, cumin lamb, and garlicky pea shoots.Pros: Dan Dan noodles were great, nice and spicy with anise/warm spices, cumin lamb was pretty good - spicy with a flavor of cumin and tumeric? Cons: there's no 'numbing' szechuan peppercorns ANYWHERE...how the heck do they call themselves szechuan when they don't even use one of the top ingredients? i mean they're missing out on so much...szechuan food is supposed to be ma-la, or numbing and spicy. they're missing half....so thats really disappointing.Overall: I'd probably go again, though I do hold the lack of szechuan peppercorns sacrilegious.

old city location. didn't see a single szechuan peppercorn in my dry pepper chicken. I've had this dish at every szechuan resto as my measuring stick. Usually see garlick, tons of red peppers, szechuan peppers and fried bone-in chicken (preferred over boneless). maybe I ordered the wrong dish?

ive heard the same about the suburban locations, but i always dine at the philly location. thats where i got takeout from. apparently han is spreading his resources a bit thin, and his other locations are suffering.

HanDynasty dan dan definitely has the szechuan peppercorns...had them at the Rofo location many times. You have to try the shrimp with dry hot peppers - it's not on the menu but it is totally the best thing ever. Give it another shot - it's a totally great place & yes, Han is spreading himself thin & the we are all suffering, but he'll get it together....too much to lose at this point.